What Is Art?

I was interested to see that Cascade ACM SIGGRAPH (the organization of computer graphics enthusiasts and professionals; also hosts of the annual SIGGRAPH conference) is holding a “Bring Your Own Art” (BYOA) evening, thanks to its Oregon and Southwest Washington's local chapter. The event is on Thursday, July 31 from 6:30pm to 9pm at The Art Institute of Portland. They're billing it as an “open mic night” for graphic artists and inviting anyone creating computer-generated artwork, including animation, 2D and 3D models, works in progress, to fine art and web design.

I think a lot of work by projection designers and content creators out there would certainly qualify. Stock footage users need not apply, to be sure. We've all seen some stunning content emerge in the last few years, from designers, multimedia artists, VJs, you name it. I think it's art, even if you guys are already professionals getting paid to create it (unlike poor Van Gogh, only appreciated in death). We live in a business of commissioned works.

Check out how VJ act Dijjital Ambiance uses a system based around an Apple octo-core Intel Mac Pro tower with multiple video cards, a RAID array, and Modul8 from GarageCube server software to pump out live visuals:

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Anyway, contact info, if you're interested: Michael Smith at [email protected] before Friday, July 25. They ask that you are able to provide contact information, title of your work, and a description, including size.

More location info at: The Art Institute's website. Oh, and it's free, and you can simply attend for a nice night of graphic arts. RSVP to [email protected].